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Aurora Awarded Big Lottery Funding

Aurora New Dawn are thrilled to announce that we have been awarded funding from the Big Lottery to deliver our DVA Car service across South-East Hampshire over the next 3 years.

Working alongside Hampshire Constabulary, specialist workers from Aurora New Dawn will respond with officers to incidents of domestic abuse as they happen, offering emotional support to survivors, completing risk assessments, and facilitating referrals to local services for ongoing support.

Through working in partnership with Hampshire Constabulary in this way, Aurora is able to offer specialist, independent support at the time it is needed most, with the project set to support up to 750 survivors over the next three years.

Shonagh Dillon, Chief Executive of Aurora New Dawn, says: “Our vision is to end discrimination against women through offering protection, safety and support. We know that two women are murdered by a current or former partner every week in England and Wales, and that on average a victim will have been abused around 35 times before they call the police. This service gives us a chance to reach out and offer face to face support at times when domestic abuse is most likely to occur, on Friday and Saturday nights. We are very excited about working in partnership with Hampshire Constabulary on this project and incredibly thankful to the Big Lottery Fund for this grant to enable us to support so many survivors.”

About the author

Sarah Cheverton is Aurora New Dawn's Writer in Residence and a freelance writer and researcher. As well as writing the copy for the Aurora website, Sarah works with the Aurora team on consultation responses, communications and service evaluations. She also works as a Co-Editor for feminist news site Women's Views on News.